Joni McGary Talks with People

Monica Perez joined me to raise a glass (or two) with me this holiday season and have a light-hearted conversation. We had some fun but of course we couldn’t resist a few substantive topics. We dig in to the broken health insurance landscape and whether a crowd-sourcing alternative might be the way to go. Monica catches us up on how rebuilding is going in fire-ravaged Altadena, where she lives in a house that didn’t burn down. We banter about whether individuals can really make a difference on a state or local level and if there is any hope of change at the federal level.

Pour yourself a glass of wine or a soothing cup of tea and settle in for a very nice chat. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

And by the way, if you are enjoying this podcast, please share it with a friend and consider dropping a review on Apple podcasts or Spotify. Thanks!

Find Monica!

https://monicaperezshow.com/

https://linktr.ee/monicaperezshow

Rumble: https://rumble.com/user/monicaperezshow

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MonicaPerez

Twitter/X: @monicaperezshow

Substack: https://substack.com/@monicaperezshow

Instagram: @monicaperezshow

Monica Mixes: Craft cocktail recipes and lively conversation for the home mixer

My old cocktail blog: http://bloomingcocktails.blogspot.com

Dr. Allon Friedman pulls no punches about what he has seen over twenty years in academic medicine. He speaks candidly about the negative impact of DEI ideology on medical education and practice, the erosion of merit-based standards in physician training, and the loss of physician autonomy to massive corporate healthcare systems. He addresses the silence among his colleagues regarding COVID lockdowns and mandates, and tells of the personal cost of speaking up in an environment that discourages it.

We also touch on the use of GLP-1 agonists to treat obesity and other conditions. Learn why Dr. Friedman calls this drug class “a cure for modern living” and why he’s optimistic about their potential to treat multiple diseases.

Medicine needs more physicians like Dr. Friedman—willing to speak up and advocate for the reforms necessary to restore sanity and good patient care.

Find Dr. Friedman’s work:

Professor of Medicine at Indiana University Medical School Profile

Publications list on PubMed

Essays at Brownstone Institute

I sit down with Dr. Joomi Kim, biologist and author of the excellent Substack “Let’s Be Clear.” If you haven’t discovered her work yet, you’ll want to subscribe.

In our conversation, Joomi describes how she became disillusioned with institutional science and what prompted her to bypass the “experts” and do her own research. She never intended to write publicly, but what she discovered so alarmed her that she felt compelled to speak up.

We talk about how fraud creeps into academic research, why institutional messaging so often diverges from the data, and what it costs to go public with dissent. Joomi also shares the experience of starting on the political left and finding herself supporting Trump to back RFK Jr., a shift she never saw coming. She offers her thoughts on what’s happening now at HHS, what changes she hopes to see, and why she’s realistic about the challenges facing changemakers.

Find Joomi:

On Substack: Let’s Be Clear

On X: @JoomiKim1

On YouTube: @Joomi101

In March 2020, just as we were entering the Covid-19 pandemic, Princeton University Press asked historian Colin Elliott to write a book about the Antonine Plague (165–175 CE), the Roman Empire’s first great pandemic. What followed was quite an interesting experience: researching an ancient disease while watching modern society repeat many of the same reactions in real time.

I recently sat down with Indiana University professor Colin Elliott (author of Pox Romana: The Plague That Shook the Roman World) to learn how the Antonine Plague exposed fatal cracks in Rome’s economy and political order and to understand the parallels to our current moment. Professor Elliott tells of religious panic and Christian scapegoating, the use of talismans to ward off disease (masking and social distancing, anyone?), currency debasement, grain-supply fragility, and the fifty-year run of violent imperial succession that followed, beginning with Commodus. Professor Elliott makes the case that Commodus, the tyrannical “gladiator emperor” and son of Marcus Aurelius, may be history’s first pandemic-traumatized leader.

We talk about all this and the changes he is seeing in his students post-lockdowns, and why one group of students has him optimistic about the future.

Find Professor Colin Elliot:

At Indiana University: Faculty Profile

Podcast: The Pax Roman Podcast (You will thank me heartily for this one - So Good!)

On YouTube: @ProfCPE

On X: @ProfCPE

Books:

Pox Romana: The Plague that Shook the Ancient Roman World

Economic Theory and the Roman Monetary Economy

How does one raise children in a world of screens, casual culture, and declining manners? In this refreshing conversation, I sit down with Faye Root, a 38-year-old writer and homeschooling mother of two (soon to be three) living in northern Michigan.

We discuss Faye’s decision to homeschool despite having attended public school herself, why she teaches her children to say “please” and “thank you” with direct instruction (not just modeling), and how she practices what she calls “placeholder parenting”—imagining the adults she wants her children to become and working backward from there.

Faye is candid about the sometimes tedious challenges of raising and homeschooling young children. But she’s also convinced that cultivating beauty, teaching manners, and prioritizing parental bonds over peer orientation are essential acts of rebuilding society.

We explore why natural materials matter, the importance of fostering curiosity over achievement, and why children need to be taught good manners in order to be welcome in other people’s homes and society at large. Whether you’re a parent, thinking about becoming one, or simply curious about alternative approaches to education and family life, this conversation offers an attractive and achievable vision of what intentional living can look like.

Find Faye Root:

Writing: Faye’s work at the Michigan Enjoyer

On Instagram: littlebayschool

On X: littlebayschool

On Substack: littlebayschoolfaye

Recommended Reading: Hold on to Your Kids by Gabor Mate and Dr. Gordon Neufeld

I recently caught up with my highschool friend John Spiri, now a professor living near Lake Biwa in Japan. We reminisce about growing up in a small town, and discuss his path from accounting to teaching English in Japan, his embrace of Zen Buddhism, and his evolving perspective on politics, shaped by his moral compass and skepticism of increasingly deceptive mainstream narratives. John shares how he lives with intention in a chaotic world, navigating global issues like AI, surveillance, and cultural shifts while staying grounded in gratitude. This meandering chat with an old friend explores remaining grounded and staying human and connected in these uncertain times.

Find John:

John on X: https://x.com/spiridigliozzi

John’s work: https://www.globalstoriespress.com/ and HERE

Recommended books:

The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist

Think on These Things by Jiddu Krishnamurti

I recently spoke to Leslie Manookian, Founder and President of Health Freedom Defense Fund and producer of the 2011 documentary film The Greater Good. Leslie tells me what prompted her to leave a highly successful Wall Street career and instead use her considerable talent to fight for informed consent and medical freedom and to move people toward better health and nutrition.

Leslie is the force behind the recently passed Idaho Medical Freedom Act, which prohibits most businesses and institutions from requiring any medical intervention for employment, admission, services, attendance or participation. It is the gold standard for informed consent and bodily autonomy and provides a template for every other state in the union.

Leslie’s story is deeply inspiring and illustrates how one person can make a huge difference.

Find Leslie & her work:

Health Freedom Defense Fund

The Greater Good Documentary Movie

On X: https://x.com/LeslieManookian and https://x.com/theHFDF

The Idaho Medical Freedom Act

In her latest Brownstone Institute article, Dr. Carla Peeters reveals the alarming post-pandemic decline in female health, with women aged 25-44 facing rising excess deaths, disabilities, cancer, and mental health issues. Unlike men, whose health is rebounding, women’s health continues to worsen, undermining their quality of life, work, and income. Dr. Peeters explores causes including over-medicalization, stress, and inequities, and warns of risks to future generations, including rising infant mortality. She urges a global public health policy to restore female health, vital for society and economic stability.

Find Dr. Peeters:

On X: https://x.com/CarlaPeeters3

Website: COBALA - Good Care Feels Better

Articles: Dr. Peeter’s articles at the Brownstone Institute

Thomas Harrington - The Treason of the Experts

How do elites shape the stories we tell ourselves about reality?

Join me for an illuminating chat with Thomas Harrington, senior scholar at the Brownstone Institute and professor emeritus of Hispanic Studies at Trinity College. We explore his incisive book The Treason of the Experts: Covid and the Credentialed Class, a collection of essays written during the Covid lockdowns that offers a powerful framework for understanding our current moment.

As a cultural historian specializing in Iberian identity movements, Tom reveals the hidden mechanics of how cultural narratives are crafted and deployed to manipulate societal realities. He draws compelling connections between historical patterns of control and today's challenges, showing how the past illuminates our present predicament.

Key Topics Discussed:

How expert classes manufacture consent through narrative control

Why historical literacy is essential for resisting manipulation

The role of authentic community in countering spectacle-driven culture

Lessons from Spain's regional identity movements for modern resistance

The disconnect between institutional expertise and lived experience

Building genuine community in an age of digital spectacle

About the Guest:

Thomas Harrington is a senior scholar at the Brownstone Institute and professor emeritus of Hispanic Studies at Trinity College. His research focuses on Iberian Peninsula culture and the mechanics of cultural identity formation. He is the author of The Treason of the Experts and writes regularly about culture, power, and resistance.

This conversation offers both clarity and hope for anyone grappling with institutional distrust, seeking to understand media manipulation, or looking for ways to build genuine community.

Find Thomas Harrington's work:

* Tom’s latest book: The Treason of the Experts: Covid and the Credentialed Class

* Essays published at Brownstone Institute: brownstone.org

* Personal Website: Words in the Pursuit of Light

* Academic Writing: https://trincoll.academia.edu/tharrington

Not every podcast needs to serve up urgent, breaking news . Sometimes, the most nourishing conversations are the ones that unfold without an agenda, offering insight and perspective. In this episode, Joni McGary invites her friend Adam Quirk, a Bloomington, Indiana entrepreneur, writer, and dedicated family man, to share his approach to living a grounded, meaningful life. Adam’s journey from his Hoosier roots to hipster Brooklyn and back to Indiana—reflects a commitment to liberty and community. He shares how disillusionment with media narratives, the 2016 election, and the Covid lockdowns reshaped his worldview. Adam offers practical insights on living authentically in an increasingly digital age.

Adam on X: https://x.com/AdamCQuirk

Website: https://adamcquirk.com/

Adam’s first YouTube Video (He was one of the first ten people on the platform): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMRNmaTOEGE